NORWALK, Conn. — Greenwich High School has emerged as one of the top programs in the tristate region since Scott Bulkley took over as head coach in 2009.
The Cardinals won the FCIAC title in Bulkley’s first season but entered the 2014 still in pursuit of a first-ever state title.
That quest ended around 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Brien McMahon High School’s Jack Casagrande Field as Greenwich defeated Staples 13-10 in the Class L title game.
“We’ve been saying all year that we can do it,” said senior attackman Jamie Paradise, who had two goals and three assists. “Now that we’ve done it, it hasn’t really sunk in.”
Greenwich (20-3) did it largely on the strength of a strong start. The Cardinals took a 4-0 lead after the first quarter. Staples (15-6) quickly made a game of it, reeling off three straight goals to start the second quarter, forcing Bulkley to call timeout.
But the Cardinals regrouped and led 6-3 at halftime and 9-6 after three quarters.
“I just kept thinking about last year and how Staples ended our season,” said Paradise, referring to a 6-5 loss in the CIAC quarterfinals.
Luke Finneran had four goals and three assists for Greenwich. Will Perry had three goals and an assist. Decker Curran had a goal and two assists. Staples was led by senior captains Patrick Lesch and Will Johnson, who had two goals and an assist and two goals, respectively.
“With (Loyola-bound senior midfielder) Kyle Foote going out (with a season-ending torn Achilles in the FCIAC final against Darien), we just wanted to win it for him,” Curran, a junior attackman headed to Michigan, said. “This team is like a second family. I love these guys.”
Stats
Greenwich 13, Staples 10
Staples (15-6) 0-3-3-4 — 10
Greenwich (20-3) 4-2-3-4 — 13
Staples scoring: Patrick Lesch 2-1, Will Johnson 2-0, Mike Reale 1-1, Pete Blevins 1-0, Josh Willis 1-0, Isaac Paparo 1-0, Eric Zurmuehle 1-0 Tucker Bobrow 1-0. Greenwich scoring: Luke Finneran 4-3, Jamie Paradise 2-3, Will Perry 3-1, Decker Curran 1-2, Ryan Flippin 1-1, Jack Nail 1-0, Bobby Goggin 1-0.
Saves: Staples- Cole Gendels, 8; Greenwich- Tommy Rogan, 10.
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